Mystery and Suspense, Flavored with Folklore

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Mae Clair: It’s Howloween H*O*P Time!

Pumpkin weather is here. Ghost, ghouls and goblins roam the night, and the moon is a bloated orb of crimson and tangerine. It must be Howloween Hop time!

As a new author, this is only the second hop I’ve participated in. I had such a blast the last time, making many new friends, that I’m thrilled to be back and taking part in the latest funfest Drea Becraft has put together.

For a complete list of all participating authors, visit the Howloween Hop Event Page. The Hop runs through Monday 10/29 at midnight. I’ll be announcing the winner of the two prizes I’m giving away on Tuesday, October 30th, so check back to see if you’ve won.

A copy of my new PNR/time-travel release WEATHERING ROCK for Kindle or Nook (Winner’s Choice)

So, as long as you’re here, grab some treats from my virtual goodie bag (I’ve got Rice Krispie Jack-o-Lanterns, chocolate spider clusters, peanut butter eyeball cookies, gummy worms, and marshmallow ghosts) and discover how a colonel from the Civil War, rival werewolves, and a modern day history teacher all connect.

I’d like to introduce you to Caleb DeCardian and Arianna Hart, the hero and heroine of WEATHERING ROCK.

As a former colonel for the Union Army during the Civil War, Caleb is used to being in charge and having others respond to his orders without question. Shortly after the Battle of Gettysburg, he’s transported to the 21st Century by a shower of ball lightning.

When WEATHERING ROCK opens, he’s already been living in the present for three years, hunting for the man who doomed him to life as a werewolf. Seth Reilly is his former friend, now a bitter rival, and the man responsible for cursing him with lycanthropy.

For someone who thrives on being in control, Caleb finds himself at the whim of a curse he’s powerless to resist, while facing the challenges of a new and confusing century. He has a highly defined sense of right and wrong; is noble at heart, but conflicted by what he’s become.

Then he meets Arianna Hart, my heroine, and suddenly he’s battling a different set of feelings. Romantic feelings.

Arianna finds Caleb bewildering, yet intriguing: courtly manners, smoldering sensuality and eyes that glow silver at night? When she sees Civil War photographs featuring a Union officer who looks exactly like Caleb, she begins to understand the man she is falling in love with harbors multiple secrets–some of which threaten the possibility of their happiness.

The path to true love and an HEA is never smooth, but these two have enormous odds stacked against them!

Before he could answer, something slammed against the door. Caleb screamed. The sound knifed through her like the violent jolt of an electrical wire.

“Caleb!” She launched herself at the door, panicked and terrified by the thought of the man she loved in horrific pain.

“Don’t!” Wyn stiff-armed her aside and grabbed the knob, forcibly holding it in place. “Get a chair. Something, anything! We’ve got to keep him locked inside.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Arianna, get a fricking chair. Now!”

There was another crash, and then a bang as something heaved against the door, making it shudder from top to bottom. Arianna heard a snarl that turned her blood to ice. The door rattled in its frame, weakening as something battered against it. Something inhuman locked in the room with Caleb.

A cold fist clamped over her stomach.

“Wyn, what’s going on?”

“Chair!” he spat. “Get me a damn chair.”

The raw urgency of his voice plowed through her confusion. She darted into the dining room, snagged a chair, and dragged it into the hallway. The thing in the parlor was still hammering away, heaving itself against the door in an attempt to burst through. Wyn’s face was white with strain as he struggled to hold the door shut with both hands. He rammed the top of the chair beneath the knob, wedging it securely into place. A blood-thirsty howl exploded from the other side, kicking Arianna’s heartbeat into overdrive.

“My God, Wyn, what’s going on?” She lurched for the door.

“Don’t. You don’t know what you’re doing.” Wyn caught her around the waist and swung her up against the wall.

She tried to squirm free. “I know Caleb’s trapped in there. We have to help him! There’s something in the room. Can’t you hear it?”

He held her wrists, pinning her arms to the wall. “Listen to me!” His eyes were wild, his face inches from hers. With a single frenetic skip of her heart, she realized he was as terrified as she was.

“There’s nothing in the room. Only Caleb. Do you hear me, Arianna? It’s Caleb.”

“No!” She shook her head, unwilling to believe what he told her, but another ear-splitting snarl fanned her fear higher. Nothing made sense. Not the stark fear in Wyn’s eyes, the sweat-slickened grip of his palms crushing her wrists or the chillingly inhuman sounds coming from the parlor. The man she loved could never sound so guttural or barbarous.

“I don’t care!” She ripped free of his hold. “I don’t care if he’s by himself or in there with something else. You have to help him!”

She lunged for the door, but Wyn grappled her around the waist, holding fast. They were still struggling when the sound of shattering glass rang through the narrow center hall of Weathering Rock.

And, although I’m not making it mandatory, I would really LOVE if you’d sign up to follow my blog, and/or give my Facebook Author Page a Like. Really, guys, you can’t lose! I talk about some interesting stuff! 😀

I love everything about Halloween, but my favorite part is passing out candy on trick-or-treat night. Your book has definitely intrigued me. Thanks for the chance to win. I’m now following via email, so I look forward to reading more posts from you. 🙂

I love the candy! My only time to really “cheat” and eat lots of goodies!! @Joanne Wadsworth…My nephew from New Zealand came here last year in October so he could experience it. He had a blast!
Mel
bournmelissa at hotmail dot com

LOL! I’m with you, Mel ~ somehow cheating on Halloween is acceptable. I do it too. And how cool your nephew from New Zealand got to experience it during a visit. I’m sure that gave him something to talk about for a long time to come!

What a great treat, even better than “sharing” the goodies in my grandkids halloween bags! 🙂 I love to take my grandkids out and watch them get all excited about seeing all the people dressed up and checking out the candy that they get.